First Frost
by mackitten
Summary: Remus supposed he would never be able to entirely sever the invisible thread that lead from Sirius to himself... Post Prank fic. [RLSB]


First Frost

Remus supposed he would never be able to entirely sever the invisible thread that lead from Sirius to himself. When Sirius was happy, so was he and when Sirius was restless, well… Remus rolled out of the four-poster bed and slid his bare feet into fuzzy maroon slippers. As his eyes adjusted to the dim light of early morning, he noticed that the curtain of Sirius' bed was pulled back and while the bed sheets were all tousled, there was no Sirius to be found.

Quietly, Remus padded across the room to James' bed and snatched the Marauder's Map from his nightstand. Grabbing his wand and whispering, '_Lumos_', he scanned the map for the name Sirius Black. He spotted him on the slope down to the lake, unmoving.

Remus stared at the map for a moment, trying to think of what he should do. If something was wrong, then he wanted to know what it was, but something inside him told him that it wasn't his place to know – not anymore. Not after the Prank that Sirius pulled just before they left for the summer holidays. With a soft sigh he shuffled over to the window and peered out, trying to spot Sirius on the lawn between the trees.

The first frost was visible in the moonlight over the pale green grass and if Remus glanced down just a little farther he could make out a figure, sitting on the grass. Even from here Remus could see he was shaking a little, though from the cold or something else he didn't know.

Decided, Remus pulled on socks and loafers and with a second thought grabbed his woollen coat and two scarves from where they hung on the hook near the door.

The map grasped firmly in his hand, he snuck out through the common room and down the empty corridor, his wand held out in front of him and emitting a dim light. He stopped several times, debating whether this was the right thing to do. True, he had forgiven Sirius almost immediately after the Prank but he had been cold and distant since they'd been back at holidays. He knew Sirius had noticed, knew Sirius had grown cold in response. He didn't know if things could be the same, if they could ever be the way they were before.

He wound the scarf around his neck and tied it firmly before stepping out into the cool early morning. His footsteps made a quiet crunching noise on the crisp grass but he made no move to silence them with a charm. He wanted Sirius to know he was coming, give him a chance to escape if he wanted to.

He kept his eyes on Sirius' back the entire time, willing him to turn around and notice him. But he didn't. Didn't acknowledge Remus until Remus was standing right beside him.

"Hi," he said, glancing upwards but not quite meeting Remus' eye. Remus looked down at his feet for a moment, before sitting down beside him.

"I thought you might be cold," he said and offered Sirius the scarf. Sirius looked at him then, really looked at him and half a dozen emotions raced across his face before he smiled and took the scarf in his shaking hand.

"First frost," Sirius said softly.

Remus made a sound of agreement.

"I –" Sirius started, a look of conflict briefly crossing his features.

"I know," Remus replied and without another word he took Sirius hand in both of his own and rubbed it until it was warm. When he finished he took Sirius' other hand and rubbed it as well in the silence.

"You cold?" Sirius asked, not removing his hand from Remus'. Remus shrugged.

"Can I warm you up?" Sirius asked softly and there was a flutter in Remus' stomach at those words, so familiar last winter and associated with a mischievous grin and a hot mouth against his own.

"Okay," Remus replied and leaned in when Sirius turned his head towards him.

Sirius was tentative and gentle, so different than the Sirius Remus had known. The Sirius Remus knew would never hesitate like this, he was brash and took what he wanted. Remus didn't know what to do with this Sirius so he kissed him back. He kissed him like he knew how, like Sirius had taught him many frosts ago.

Sirius pulled away slightly and leaned their foreheads together.

"I missed you," he said softly, still holding Remus' hand. Remus shushed him and touched their lips together once more.

They started at the sound of a loud crow in a tree near by.

"We should go in," Remus said, noticing that the sun was starting to come up. Sirius nodded and stood, hoisting Remus up with him.

"Are you in your pyjamas?" he asked Remus incredulously, looking down at his plaid pants.

Remus blushed and ducked his head. "I was worried, you git."

He blushed further when Sirius gave a barking laugh – his first in a while – and pulled Remus to him roughly. He only dropped his arm around Remus' shoulders when they got to the front doors of Hogwarts.

"Are we okay?" Sirius asked, his hand pausing on the door handle.

"I think so," Remus said with a small smile and together they walked into the warm school, hands almost touching.


End file.
